Justification

Justification humbles the soul!
Luke 18:9-14

Justification is the cornerstone upon which our faith is built. It has been called the article upon which the church stands or falls. Can we be justified before God? And if so how? Martin Luther, the famous reformer said justification is

…the chief article of Christian doctrine. To him who understands how great its usefulness and majesty are, everything else will seem slight and turn to nothing…For if we know this article, we are in the clearest light; if we do not know it, we dwell in the densest darkness.”

So my goal is we will be able to better understand justification this morning, and be in the clearest light rather than the densest darkness.

The we said the term reconciliation comes out of the relational world. One person is reconciled to another person. Justification however comes out of the legal world. The word comes from the Greek word dikaiosune which means ‘to declare righteous.’

So imagine an accused murderer. He stands before the judge and the jury. Various evidence is brought before the court. Some of it in his favor, some of it against him. A number of witnesses come forward. At the end of the trial, the court weighs all of the information and they declare the defendant either guilty or dikaiosune ‘innocent, not guilty, righteous’

In the Bible, God is often described as Judge. He is the Judge of the living and the dead. He is the judge of all the earth. He condemns the wicked, and upholds the righteous. Unlike an earthly judge however he knows everything and is never deceived, he always judges correctly. The question throughout Scripture is as sinners what is our verdict before God? Are we guilty or not guilty? Will we be condemned before the judgment seat of Almighty God? Is it possible for us to be dikaiosune ‘declared righteous’ before the eternal court of God?

Using the ‘justification’ language, Jesus tells this story. In hearing this story, ‘Let justification humble our souls’

[Read Luke 18:9-14]


Be wary the pride of self-justification

The first man in Jesus’ parable is a Pharisee. Now we use the word Pharisee in a very negative way. But remember the people who are hearing this would not consider the Pharisees bad guys. They would be considered the religious leaders of his day. They would be clearly seen by all as morally superior to the majority of the people. In the people’s minds, they are the good guys. They know their Bibles. They teach the people. They obey the Law.

But Jesus tells the story about this Pharisee who comes to the temple. So far so good, it’s good thing to go to the temple. The Jews were supposed to travel to Jerusalem, to go to the temple and worship. He comes in and he prays, also a good thing. God is big on prayer, Jesus is big on prayer, so far so good. And the first line of his prayer is “God, I thank you…” He’s giving thanks to God. Doesn’t even start with ‘God please give me…’ He’s showing gratitude to God. “God I thank you” But it all goes down hill from there.

“God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.”

Here is the issue. Certainly it’s true that the Pharisee wasn’t as blatant about his sin as the people he mentioned: he wasn’t a blatant thief. He wasn’t a blatant adulterer. He wasn’t a traitor to his people like the tax collector. But his statement shows a horrendous degree of self-deception about his own sin, and an amazing degree of arrogance.

His prayer continues, “I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get” Both good things to do. Fasting twice a week was above and beyond the Biblical standard. And many Pharisees were so careful about their tithing they would make sure even to tithe their spices. So what’s wrong with this prayer?


It is full of self-righteousness. It is the evidence of a man who believes his own actions have earned him a not guilty verdict before God. The Pharisee believed himself to be better than other men. He believed that his actions made him more righteous than those around him. But even worse, he believed his actions made him righteous not only before men, but before God. The problem with that is he is a sinner just like everyone he mentioned. Sure his sin may be less noticeable, more discreet, than the robbers, evildoers, and adulterers, and especially more so than the tax collector, but before an all Holy God, he is guilty. An Anglican bishop once said,

“The harlot, the liar, the murderer, are short of [God’s glory]; but so are you. Perhaps they stand at the bottom of a mine, and you on the crest of an Alp; but you are as little able to touch the stars as they.”

The Pharisee believed that if he had stood before the Almighty Throne of God, and were face to face with the infinitely Holy Judge of all the earth who sees through the heart and mind, that God would look upon him and his life and say “Justified,” innocent, not guilty. Because you are worthy of me. And that friends is the ultimate pride of man.

Justification was what the reformation was all about. Justification was the primary reason why the church split between Protestant and Roman Catholic. Some of us here may be from a Roman Catholic background. Some here may have family and friends who are Roman Catholics. You may be wondering why the division? Let me say, the issue of justification by faith alone is the decisive issue when it comes to Roman Catholicism. The issue is not about liturgy. The Bible has no issue with liturgies. Formal prayers, and responsive readings, and catechisms are not an issue. The psalms were read in worship by God’s people as a formal prayer. There is no issue when it comes to beautiful architecture like cathedrals and monasteries. There is no issue when it comes to robes and incense. On special occasions we will break out the robes. I think it would be pretty cool to see Pastor Howard walking up and down the pews sprinkling incense on us. Here is the issue: How are we justified before God? How are we declared righteous before him?

Roman Catholicism taught that we are saved by faith PLUS works. Not that we are saved by our works alone, that’s simply not what Catholicism teaches. We are saved by faith PLUS the sacraments. So for example the catechism teaches that when someone commits a big sin like adultery, murder, or grand theft, they must do penance to be made innocent: faith PLUS works. Good deeds, like fasting and tithing are part of the saving grace by which God saves us. We are justified by faith PLUS works.

The reformers responded, ‘No we are not justified by faith PLUS works. We are saved through faith alone in what Christ alone and what he has done for us on the cross. If we were judged based on our works, we would all be condemned.’

Here’s why this matters. When we stand before the Judge of all the earth, what will we say? Will we say,

“I thank you Father, that through penance and the sacraments I am not like other men, robbers, adulterers, evil-doers, and other mortal sinners. I thank you that I tithe and fast, have received baptism and communion. Surely this has made me righteous, justified in your sight.”

Or will we say, “God have mercy on, a sinner.” If it were not by grace through faith alone, I am condemned.

The difference is enormous. What makes you right in God’s sight? One allows us a level of pride and superiority before others. So that when we stand before God, we would have something to proud of. The other says, it is all of you and none of me.

But friends, it is not Catholicism that makes us self-righteous. It is pride in our hearts. We tend to want something to earn our salvation. Maybe it is baptism for us Baptists. We want to be able to say to God, you have to accept me because I’ve been baptized. Maybe it’s just being a good citizen, God has to let justify me, I’ve been a good person. We want something to boast about before God.

But friends, we need to think long and hard about whether or not we can rely on our own righteousness when we stand before an All-Holy, All-righteous, perfect Judge for whom sin is a terrible affront. God who must judge us rightly, he cannot simply fudge the rules or grade us on a curve.

It’s sinful nature that tends towards this self-righteousness, this self-justification. Fee and Stuart “How to Read the Bible for All it’s worth” tell the story about a Sunday School teacher, who immediately after telling this story about the Pharisee and the Tax Collector, prayer “I thank you that we are not like this Pharisee”. How quickly self-righteousness sets in. And even in hearing that we might feel, thank goodness I’m not like that Sunday School teacher.

Be wary the pride of self-justification. Notice who Jesus specifically tells this parable to: those who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else. The very reason why Jesus tells this parable is as an attack on the pride of self-righteousness.


Be joyful of the humility of God-justification

Notice the tax collector. Again when we think of tax collectors we mistakenly think they must be kind of like the good guys. They are the guys Jesus is constantly showing hanging out with. But we need to remember these were dirty rotten scoundrels. These guys were traitors. People can usually put up with almost any kind of sinner, right? We can tolerate a bad temper. We might be a bit amused a heavy drinker. We can stand a thief if need be. But nobody likes a traitor. Just as a test how many people do you know are named Judas? Tax collectors were seen as traitors. They sold out to the Romans and got rich off their fellow Israelites.

Yet this particular tax collector is broken by his sin. He is devastated. He walks in and stands in the back. He feels too ashamed of himself to approach the front of the temple, so he stands far off. He keeps his head down. He doesn’t want to look up to heaven. He starts beating his chest in anguish, as if to say “I hate what I have become.” His prayer is short, simple, and sincere “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Remember last week we talked about repentance and receiving grace. He is genuinely repentant: he recognizes his sin and has turned to God coming to the temple. He is genuinely looking to receive grace, that’s why he’s praying “Have mercy, have mercy”

And Jesus releases the bombshell: “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (14)

The tax collector is the one who is ‘declared righteous’. When he stands before the judgment seat of Almighty God, Jesus is saying, God will look upon his sorry life, and declare him dikaiosune “innocent” Obviously not because of anything worthy or righteous about him, by grace alone through faith alone.

What does that do to our pride? The traitor is justified. The self-righteous Pharisee is condemned. Justification is the most humbling reality to our souls. It is God’s way of exalting the humble and humbling the exalted.

Think about what the tax collector contributed to his justification? Nothing. He didn’t earn it. He was a traitor who had disobeyed the law. Sure he went to the temple to pray, but that wasn’t in order to earn forgiveness. He went to a place of prayer to beg God for mercy. He didn’t engage in some long drawn out ritual. He didn’t perform some special religious ceremony. His prayer was a simple one-liner that brought out the cry of his own humbled soul, “God have mercy on me a sinner.” Justification is all of God, and none of us. Be joyful of the humility of God-justification

Just like the story of the prodigal son however, this sounds too good to be true. How can Jesus say that sinners can be justified: Declared righteous in God’s sight? There is the issue of justice. Yes, the Pharisee was guilty even though he was too proud to realize it. But the Tax Collector is guilty too! How can God simply justify someone who is guilty? If a human judge did that there would be a public outcry. “That is a travesty of justice. You can’t simply let the guilty go free. You can’t simply declare a man innocent who is anything but innocent. He is a traitor.

And not only that, what gives Jesus the right to say these things? What makes it true? I mean think about it, anyone could say that. People say things about God all the time. Anyone can say “God is justifying sinners.” “God is declaring sinners righteous in his sight.” “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” Anyone can say that. But what makes what Jesus is saying actually true?

It is the fact that he himself brings it about. In fact, that was the very reason why he came.

We read in Romans 3:21 “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

Jesus, though innocent, would take upon himself the guilty verdict for sin we deserve. He would be condemned for us. He would be punished, and crushed, and crucified in our behalf. And in doing so would place upon us the innocent verdict that he deserved. So that we who are sinners and deserve to be judged can be dikaiosune “justified”

CJ Mahaney, one of my favorite pastors writes,
I am the worst sinner I know. And by the grace of God I am doing better than I deserve. For I deserve the righteous wrath of God because of my sin. I deserve to be punished eternally. But in the mystery of His mercy, God sacrificed and crushed His Son on the Cross--as my substitute--so that I might be forgiven of my sin and know God as my Father rather than my Judge. What am I? I am truly amazed by the grace of God. That’s what I am.
Friends, this is the best news you could ever hear. It means anyone, anyone, the worst sinner we know, which really is ourselves because we know ourselves better than anyone, can be accepted by God. What blessing is greater than this? Money? Cars? A job? It is the true blessing, and the most humbling news we can receive.

Let justification humble your soul.

On August 21, 1996 a young man in his 20s by the name of Antonio Beaver was arrested for allegedly attacking a young lady in a parking lot in St. Louis. He approached her with a screwdriver in an attempt to steal her purse and her car. The victim described the attacker as a clean-shaven African American man wearing a baseball cap with a David Letterman like gap between his teeth. During the attack there was a struggle that left some of the attacker’s blood on the car door. Antonio Beaver was arrested and charged with first-degree robbery. The court found him guilty and sentenced him to 18 years in prison.

There was only one problem, Antonio Beaver was completely innocent of the crime he was found guilty for. In 2007, DNA testing of the blood found in the car door proved without a shadow of a doubt that Antonio Beaver could not have been the attacker. Less than a year ago, in March 29, 2007, now in his forties, after spending more than a decade incarcerated, he was exonerated. Before the court he was finally declared “dikaiosune” declared not guilty. The secret of his justification was in the blood.

Friends, you and I will one day stand face to face with our Creator, the Judge of all the Earth. Make no mistake about it, we will one day see our Judge. What will be his verdict for you? Unlike the judge that convicted Antonio Beaver, God is never deceived. And unlike Antonio Beaver we are not secretly innocent before the court. We are genuinely and truly guilty. But the secret is in the blood. Christ’s sacrifice has provided a way for us to be justified, ‘declared righteous’ before him. And it comes to us not by Faith PLUS works. Not by being better than other men: robbers, adulterers, evil-doers. Not by tithing and fasting. Be wary of the pride of self-justification. It comes by repentance and receiving grace, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner” It comes through the sacrifice of God’s one and only son. It comes by faith alone in Christ alone. Be joyful the humility of God’s justification. And let justification humble our souls.